Kojima’s Death Stranding movie may not feature fan-favorite characters

Hideo Kojima recently divulged that he’s unsure of whether or not the Death Stranding movie will feature characters from the game.

After plenty of rumors and leaks, Hideo Kojima surprised audiences upon announcing Death Stranding 2 at the 2022 Game Awards. The DS news didn’t stop there, either.

Just last week, Kojima revealed plans to bring the apocalyptic United States-set world to the big screen in a live-action film. Kojima Productions is on board to produce the Death Stranding movie, alongside Barbarian’s Hammerstone Studios.

Details about the project remain scarce at best, but cursory details from the series’ creator suggest it won’t follow in the footsteps of other video game adaptations.

Death Stranding’s movie may not include your favorite characters

In an interview celebrating seven years of Kojima Productions, Kojima told IGN his intention isn’t to create a “blockbuster film.” He instead aims to follow an “arthouse approach;” Hammerhead’s Alex Lebovici was “the only person who offered to make a film like that.”

It should come as no surprise, then, that the legendary developer wants to craft something different from the game, so as to avoid the troubles that beset similar adaptations in the past.

But on the topic of what this means for known Death Stranding characters, Kojima said he and the creative team haven’t decided if the likes of Sam Bridges will appear in the movie.

“…I’m taking the approach of changing and evolving the world of Death Stranding in a way that suits film well. I made Death Stranding to be a game, and games are games. There’s no real need to turn them into films,” he explained.

As a result, despite famous actors such as Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen serving as the faces of Death Stranding, it’s possible their characters won’t make the cut for the movie version.

This isn’t the end of the road for Sam Bridges, though; he’ll appear in Death Stranding 2, after all. But, like the film adaptation, there’s no word on when the sequel will be available for public consumption.